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Pavilion project began without proper bidding
(by Joseph Koziol Jr. - October 26, 2011)
Pavilion project began without proper bidding
By JOSEPH KOZIOL JR.
Chardon Township may have inadvertantly skirted competitive bidding laws in construction of a pavilion at the township's park.
Township Trustee Steven Borawski raised the issue last week during the board's regular meeting, asking for an account of how the project now is rising beyond the $25,000 threshold for competitive bidding.
Although the threshold was recently amended to $50,000 when Gov. John Kasich signed a reform measure Sept. 29, because the project was begun before the new law took effect, the old threshold applies.
Mr. Borawski said the project now is 34 percent over budget at around $37,000. He said the project of framing the pavilion was at $21,500 before additional costs were incurred. A steel roof will cost another $10,000 and concrete flooring will add $6,300.
The township initially considered a shingled roof at $3,000 but later agreed to the higher-priced and more durable steel roof, Mr. Borawski said. He said the township also did not at first consider a concrete pad for the project.
Trustee Charles Strazinsky Jr., who is in charge of the project, said there is no secret to how the project got to where it's at. "It's all on the public record," he said. "Why is this happening now?"
Mr. Borawski said it is likely that state auditors who review the township's books will issue a citation for failing to abide by the law.
He said it's important to provide an accounting to the township's fiscal officer, who will likely take the blame for the mistake and she will need to present auditors with an explanation.
Mr. Strazinsky agreed to provide an accounting but said he does not understand why the separate accounting is needed. "She would already have it," he said of the fiscal officer. "It's in the minutes."
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